Harold Ramis, who appeared in such movies as “Ghostbusters” and “Groundhog Day,” has died. The actor, director and writer was 69 years old.

His lawyer, Fred D. Toczek, confirmed the news to Speakeasy this morning.

Chris Day at United Talent Agency said in an email that Ramis passed away this morning at his Chicago home.

His family said in a statement that the filmmaker died “from complications related to auto-immune inflammatory vasculitis, a condition Ramis battled for the past four years.”

Ramis was born in Chicago, graduated from Washington University in St. Louis, MO., and launched his comedy career in 1969 as part of Chicago’s Second City improvisational troupe.

Ramis appeared in such movies as “Stripes” (1981), “Ghostbusters” (1984), “Groundhog Day” (1993) and other popular comedies. He also co-wrote “Animal House” (1978), “Caddyshack” (1980) and “Stripes” and directed “Caddyshack,” “Groundhog Day,” “National Lampoon’s Vacation” (1983) and “Analyze This” (1999).

Ramis’s movies helped establish the genre of event comedy films in the late 1970s and 1980s. “Ghostbusters” blended epic special effects and broad humor to score a major box office hit; “Caddyshack,” “Stripes” and “Groundhog Day” turned “Saturday Night Live” cast member Bill Murray into a respected actor and movie star. “Groundhog Day” was also a critical favorite, regularly turning up on critics lists as one of Hollywood’s best comedies.

His movies often spawned quotable lines like “It’s in the hole!” from “Caddyshack.” “They felt quotable even as they were happening,” Ramis once said. “The stuff that made us laugh on the set turns out to be the stuff that people continue to laugh at.”

Ramis is survived by his wife Erica, his sons Julian and Daniel, daughter Violet and two grandchildren.

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